Crypto platform Rain raises USD 110 mn series B: Bahrain’s Rain Financial, the parent company of crypto trading platform Rain Management, has raised USD 110 mn in a series B funding round led by Paradigm and Kleiner Perkins, according to a company release. The round saw participation from Coinbase Ventures, Global Founders Capital, Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP), Cadenza Ventures and CMT Digital, among others.

Rain will use the investment for expansion “across other countries and regions,” the statement said, without giving any more details. The investments will also be earmarked for improving Rain’s technology and growing its team. Rain has subsidiaries in Bahrain, Turkey and the UAE, according to the statement, while the company counts Bahrain, the UAE, Kuwait, Oman, and Saudi Arabia among its supported markets.

That means persuading regulators on crypto: The funding will allow the company to “continue conversations with regulators across the MENA region, Turkey, and Pakistan about the benefits and potential of cryptocurrency,” the statement read. Many countries in the region — including Turkey and Pakistan — are considering if and how to regulate the crypto industry.

About Rain: Based in Bahrain, Rain became the first fully licensed digital currency exchange in the region when it received its sandbox license from the Central Bank of Bahrain in 2017. The company, which counts Egypt’s Yehia Badawy among its four co-founders, last year raised USD 6 mn in a series A round led by MEVP with participation from Coinbase, Vision Ventures, CMT Digital Ventures, JIMCO, and DIFC Fintech Fund.